A bit of central Illinois for Sen. Kirk’s office

Thursday morning, U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk ensured that visitors to his Washington, D.C., office will get a significant reminder of central Illinois when they arrive. He unveiled a portrait of Pekin native and longtime U.S. Sen. Everett Dirksen in his office.

On hand for the affair were U.S. Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Peoria, who represents the territory Dirksen once did in the U.S. House, and Rep. Bobby Schilling, R-Colona, whose 17th District will include Pekin after the 2012 election.

Dirksen, the minority leader in the Senate at the time of his death, is perhaps best remembered for his principled backing of civil rights legislation during the turbulent 1960s, and is also fondly recalled for his steady, moderate leadership. (Many in Pekin will also note his frequent attempts to get his beloved marigolds named as the national flower.)

Kirk seems interested in working to provide the same kind of steady, moderate approach that Dirksen did. I’ve already written before about the freshman senator’s effort to reach across the aisle with as simple an approach as a regular bipartisan lunch.

For those of us who admire Dirksen, it’s always nice to see another reminder of him — and the politics of decency — crop up in Washington. And in this case, the reminder is one that folks in central Illinois may find familiar. You see, the portrait is a copy of one that’s been donated to the Dirksen Congressional Center in Pekin. That one is itself a copy of the original, which was painted shortly before Dirksen’s death. A release from Kirk’s office explains:

“In 1968, artist Richard Harryman approached Illinois Senator Everett Dirksen and requested he be allowed to paint a likeness of the senator. Dirksen complied and in the fall of 1969, just weeks before Dirksen passed away, he completed the portrait. In 1984, Dirksen’s son-in-law, Senator Howard Baker Jr., had Harryman make three replicas of his original Dirksen portrait. Senator Baker donated one to the Senate, one to the Dirksen Congressional Center in Pekin, Illinois and the final replica was donated to the Capitol Hill Club in Washington, DC.”